>Not to mention in the era I grew up in (before social media), people had pretty much the exact same complaint, except it was TV rotting kids’ brains (of course, there can be truth to both, but I’m skeptical the present era is uniquely terrible - kids used to watch a lot of TV).

I grew up in the same era... and the solution to that was easy: my parents told me to go outside and play.

In 2021, their phone goes with them everywhere, and if it doesn't one of their friend's phones does. There's almost no way, short of helicopter parenting 24/7, that you can insulate your children from Tik Tok, and I'd argue it is far, far, far more harmful than TV. Random kids at school didn't attack me for the TV shows I watched privately in my own home in high school.

Modern phones have parental controls that let you limit app usage, of course that doesn’t apply to friends’ phones, but if they are socializing in-person with friends close enough to lend their phone at least there’s some level of child development success there.

And phones are hardly the worst thing friends can get your kid into... I remember the main concern being alcohol or drugs, which I think have since declined (at least among youth).

I have to say I am not familiar with the attacks based on browsing history you speak of though. How/why does this happen? Are you forced to make it public?